Against All Odds
by Princess Pheonix Tears
Summary: You have heard the rumors of how we got together, how the sworn enemies fell madly in love against all odds. I laugh because all of those stories are only pieces of the truth. Why do all of you believe he switched sides? Whoever said it wasn't me?
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's Note:_**_ I would first like to say that this story has been on hiatus for about four years. I started it so many years ago and then just lost inspiration. It was at one point, posted on , but I removed it when I couldn't seem to get over my writer's block. I was suddenly struck with the inspiration to finish this story and so now I post it again._

_Next, I would like to say that this is incredibly AU. That is not usually my style of writing, I'm a pretty big stickler for canon. But this was an idea in my head that just wouldn't go away when I first thought up this idea. Granted, I know that this idea is not completely unique. I won't deny that. This is just my spin on a concept that was developed ages ago by several other authors. I hope you all enjoy it._

* * *

**Prologue**

Many of you have heard the rumors of how we got together. The sworn mortal enemies of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry fell madly in love with each other. It's interesting the stories I hear about myself, about how he came to the 'good' side, how I had a hidden identity that made me a pureblood that we just fell madly in love against all the odds. There are even a few rumors out there that say I am the daughter of Lord Voldemort himself.

It's funny how I hear all these things. People come up to me and say, 'Do you know what happened to you?' and I laugh, because all of those stories are only pieces of the truth. Why is it that all of you believe he was the one who switched sides? Whoever said that it wasn't me?

Now, I won't deny that some of that is true, because a lot of it is. A lot of what you hear is true; it's twisted into some exotic and wild tale. It is true that we fell in love against all the odds, that I have a hidden identity, that I am a pureblood. I won't deny any of that. But all of this bull shit about him joining our side is false. I was the one who switched sides. It was all me.

The truth couldn't have come out at a better time. I was sick of it all. Of the image that I had, of the role I had to play. I was the one on the good side, I never fought, and I was the peacemaker. I was the smart one, the logical one, and I was taken advantage of. I was tired of them taking advantage of my intelligence and them never giving me the credit. I was sick of being cast to the side while they took the spot light, while they became the heroes.

When the truth came out, I didn't want to tell them. I wanted to keep this newly found information to myself. I wanted to see how I could use this to my advantage. I was trying to think of how I could once again help out the good side without getting the credit.

Then, he came along. He offered me the world, he offered me power, but above all else, he offered me his love, and I couldn't refuse. It was so intoxicating, that I couldn't say no. It was raw and uncut passion. I became addicted to it all, I got caught up in the rush, and I was sucked in.

Looking back on it all, I have to say it was all worth it. Worth the prize and power I received in the end, and I honestly can say that I have never been happier. I can honestly say if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter One**

Hermione Granger, a 16 year old Sixth Year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, walked down a long corridor towards her N.E.W.T. level Charms class with quick, long steps. She was running ahead of time, but she was the type of person who believed that nothing should be done slowly and with procrastination. She believed in being early to her classes, and getting work done right away. If she got to class early she considered it a privilege to have a few extra minutes to read a book, one of her favorite hobbies.

She reached her Charms class and found that, as usual, she was the first one there. In fact, the students had a good seven minutes to reach their destination before classes would start. Hermione always arrived early seeing as she wasn't the most social person, and could care less about talking to people or catching up on her gossip in between classes.

She sat down in her normal seat in the front row, and then pulled out her book on famous witches and wizards who invented different potions, and their uses. The book was entitled _Most Famous Potions Masters; Potions and Their Uses_. Hermione found it intriguing, and was now seriously considering a career in Alchemy. She didn't have the best Potion grades, but then again with professor Snape teaching Potions, who did?

A few moments after she sat down another student entered and sat down. But Hermione didn't look up, she just continued her reading. Soon more and more students arrived in the classroom, but Hermione paid them no mind, she continued to read her book, even when her two best friends came in and sat near her.

When the final bell rang and the class started, and Hermione finally (albeit reluctantly) put her book down. They were learning a new charm for healing small cuts and scrapes. Hermione approved of this, seeing as how she could think of a million ways that this charm would be useful to her in the future. At the end of class the students were each assigned a 12 inch essay, and then were given time to start on the essay in class. Hermione went to work diligently. She pulled out her Charms textbook and opened it up, and got to work, once again ignoring the whispering and gossip that seemed to fly around her.

Hermione hadn't even completed her first paragraph in what she was sure was going to be at least a 15 inch essay when there was a knock on the door. It was Headmaster Dumbledore himself.

Hermione, being the observant person she was, noticed that he had a small forced smile on his face and the normal twinkle in his eyes seemed to have faded. He looked over at Professor Flitwick, sadly.

"Ah, Professor, may I please excuse Ms. Granger from class? I do not believe she will be returning to class today." Dumbledore said softly. Hermione was stunned.

Professor Flitwick looked slightly concerned, but agreed with a nod of his head. "Of course you may. Ms. Granger, you are dismissed." He said with a small flick of his hand, returning back to his notes on his desk.

Hermione was confused as to what the problem was. She couldn't possibly be in trouble, she hardly ever broke the rules, and she knew for a fact that she hadn't broken any lately. She gathered her things, put them in her bag, and went to follow Dumbledore, a million thoughts racing through her mind.

"Ms. Granger, I feel it important that we talk in private. I believe my office will do." He said solemnly, turning to lead her to his office.

"Professor, am I in trouble?" Hermione asked, voicing her concerns.

Dumbledore shook his head slowly. "No, you're not. Please, follow me."

They arrived at the gargoyle that led to Dumbledore's office, and she heard him say the password, "Black Licorice" and opening to his office appeared out of nowhere. He led her up the winding stairs and into his office, motioning for her to sit in front of his desk.

She sat down and put her bag down by the chair. She looked at him concerned. "Is something wrong, Professor?" She asked timidly. She had never been more scared in her life, well, at least she couldn't remember being this scared or nervous.

He looked upset. "Ms. Granger, I really don't know how to tell you this. Believe me, I was shocked when I found out."

Hermione was really starting to get very nervous, and she started trembling. She took a breath. "Just tell me, Headmaster." She said. Under normal circumstances, she would never talk to a teacher that way, but she was incredibly nervous.

"Ms. Granger, I'm sorry to say that you aren't who you think you are." He said softly.

Hermione's eyes widened with shock. Her mind couldn't seem to grasp what he was saying. She wasn't even sure she had heard him right. "What are you talking about?" She whispered.

He sighed before continuing. "I don't know much of the story, myself. I only know what I was told." Dumbledore said. "Back during the first struggle against Voldemort, there were several more Death Eater families than there are now. Many were killed at Voldemort's demise. Many were captured and died in captivity.

"There was one couple, who were particularly close to Voldemort himself. Their name was Martini. The husband was Italian, and the wife was English. They were a pureblood couple, and as soon as Voldemort started gathering forces, they joined his side. They were the Malfoys of the first struggle, does that make sense?" He asked her.

She nodded, not quite grasping all he was saying, but she nodded just the same. She needed to hear the end of this.

"After a couple years, they had a daughter. Her name was Karina. She was a lovely little girl. She was the spitting image of her father. She was supposed to be a powerful child. Voldemort favored her parents above all his other followers, so he announced that she would become his special project. She would be his surrogate daughter, his heir when she came of age. She would take over everything, should anything ever happened to him.

"The Martinis were the Order's primary targets aside from Voldemort himself. We tried to capture them several times, but each time we failed. Eventually, Mr. Martini was killed under suspicious circumstances. We still don't know what happened to him. His wife was afraid of the same fate so she gave her little girl up to a couple unable to have children. They were the Grangers, and you were that little girl. The fate Mrs. Martini was afraid of came true, and she too was killed under mysterious and rather suspicious circumstances.

"The Grangers changed your name and raised you the best they could. But from what I gather, they knew that someday they would have to tell the truth. When you turn 17 you will revert back to your true form. They wrote to me and informed me of this since your birthday is in two months." Dumbledore said quietly.

Hermione was now looking down at her hands, which were trembling violently now. She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "I'm the daughter of Death Eaters?" She asked weakly. This was almost too much to handle, even for her.

Dumbledore nodded sadly. "I'm afraid so. I honestly thought you were dead. We all did. No one realized that you were still alive. Not even Voldemort."

Hermione nodded sadly. "I see." She whispered.

"Ms. Granger, is there anything we can do for you?" He asked kindly.

She shook her head slowly. "No." She paused. "Actually, if you could keep this a secret, I'd appreciate it." She added as afterthought.

"I understand completely." He said with a small smile.

"May I leave?" She asked weakly.

Dumbledore nodded. "You are excused from all classes today and tomorrow if you need it."

Hermione nodded. Under any other circumstances she would have said she didn't need it, but she knew that she did. She knew that she would spend the rest of the day locked in her room, thinking about all she had learned.

Hermione left his office quietly, slowly putting her bag on her shoulder. She walked slowly towards her dorm room. Her mind rushing full of thoughts, flooding her head, and she was unable to make them go away. Like always she completely ignored the other students around her. She didn't even hear the whispers about herself when she passed by the groups of giggling students. Her mind was elsewhere.

_She was the daughter of Death Eaters?_

_Was her whole life a lie?_

_What kind of powers did she have that she didn't know about?_

_Voldemort's heir?_

And worst of all- _What would happen when she reverted back into her "self"? Would her personality change? Would she change completely?_

Hermione found herself in her dorm. She put her stuff away and then went to her bed. She sat there, curtains drawn around herself. She felt a few tears fall down her face. It was odd for her since she hardly ever cried. She didn't know what to think. She just sat there, trying to push all the horrid thoughts out of her mind.

She heard a few of her roommates come in, but she ignored them. She could hear them whisper when they saw her closed off bed, but she didn't pay attention to their comments and questions. She was glad when they finally left her alone and went to bed themselves.

Hermione slowly drifted off to sleep. Her dreams turned into nightmares and she had visions of a beautiful couple falling prey to mysterious deaths at the hands of cruel men. She saw a baby girl being given to another couple in secret and in a dark place. She saw the Dark Lord, and she felt a shudder come over her body. She then saw a beautiful tanned girl with soft dark brown curls standing in radiance, wearing expensive and beautiful robes with a diamond tiara on her head. Hermione stared at her, looking deeply into her eyes. Suddenly she heard a loud cackle and she whirled around in shock and surprise.

Hermione sat straight up in her bed, and realized that she was drenched in a cold sweat. She looked around and found that her curtains were still drawn around her bed. She lay back down on her pillow and stared up at the ceiling. She slowly drifted off to sleep, but was mercifully blessed with no dreams.

The next morning, Hermione woke up, but didn't get out of her bed. She listened to the chatter of the other girls, but didn't join in. She kept her curtains closed because she still didn't want to deal with them and their questions.

She closed her eyes and sighed. She knew that there was no way that she would be going to her classes today. She laid there, replaying the scene in Dumbledore's office over in her mind. She opened her eyes and frowned. She remembered something that hadn't registered yesterday. He had said something about her true form.

She sat up. She wanted to ask him what that was all about. She wanted to know what her true form was. She waited for the girls to leave for class before she left her bed. She brushed her hair until the frizz calmed down as much as it would. She took a look at her ordinary appearance, and then with a somewhat satisfied nod at herself, she turned to leave.

Hermione walked briskly down the halls, ignoring looks from students that passed by. She made her way to Dumbledore's office, and she repeated the password she had heard him use the day before. Glad that it worked, she stepped inside the revolving staircase and waited for it to bring her up to his office.

When his office came into view, she saw him sitting at his desk, working on some parchments.

"Professor?" She asked.

He didn't look up when he said. "Yes, Ms. Granger?"

"Professor, I had a question. Yesterday you said that I would soon be changing into my true form. What did you mean by that?" She asked urgently.

Dumbledore looked up, the twinkle had returned to his eyes. "I had a feeling you would want to know about that." He put his quill down. "Your real parents put an illusion on you to hide your real identity. Your true features will show themselves eventually, or I could put a Revealing Spell on you."

Hermione stood there for a moment, contemplating her choices. She looked at Dumbledore and nodded. "I'd like to see what I look like." She said.

Dumbledore nodded his agreement. "_Revelo_." He said.

Hermione felt a warm tingle go through out her body. It lasted a full minute before it quickly subsided. She closed her eyes as she turned towards the mirror on her right. She opened her eyes and was shocked at what she saw. Her eyes were a darker brown. Her hair was almost black, and her skin was a nice tan color. She stared in shock at the reflection in the mirror.

"Oh my god." She whispered. "It's me."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Two**

Hermione stared in wonder at her reflection. She was overcome with the beauty that had been hidden from her for her whole life. She didn't want to sound vain, but she was gorgeous. Her tan skin accented her dark hair and dark eyes very nicely. She had long black lashes that framed her eyes, which were twinkling in wonder.

Hermione noticed that her height had increased by about half an inch. Her legs were long and slender, and her torso suddenly seemed to go with the rest of her body. Her hair had sleek and shiny curls, not frizzy and bushy curls. Her tan skin was glowing and healthy. Hermione's eyes were glued to the girl in the mirror.

"Professor, I'm beautiful!" She exclaimed. She was completely astounded by the person staring back at her in the mirror.

"I'm glad you're satisfied, but I must reverse it now. I can't have Ms. Martini walking around the school. I trust you to think over this new information carefully." Dumbledore said.

Hermione sighed and nodded, and watched as Dumbledore turned her back into Hermione Granger. Hermione sighed wistfully as she reached a hand out to touch the mirror where she had seen her beautiful side.

"Thank you, Professor." She said softly before turning out of the office and leaving.

Hermione went back to her dorm to do what Dumbledore had told her. She thought about everything that had happened in the past 24 hours. She sat on her bed with the curtains drawn around her and thought about it all.

She thought about her parents and what they stood for. They were purebloods who hated muggle borns, but they had put her with muggles. Of course that was for her own safety, so no one would find her. Despite the fact that they had been evil people with evil intentions, they had loved her enough to make sure that she would be safe for the rest of her life. Well at least until she was old enough and could take care of herself. She found it fascinating that people who had such evil beliefs could still be capable of such an unconditional love. She had never thought that Death Eaters could be capable of such love.

Her thoughts of her parents quickly turned towards their mysterious deaths. She wondered how she could find out what happened to them. She had no idea who to ask. If Dumbledore didn't know, who would? Didn't Dumbledore know everything?

She sat on her bed for a little while longer and then went down to the common room to relax a little bit and maybe even catch Harry and Ron before dinner started.

She made her way to her favorite couch and sat down, staring into the fire to wait for her friends. A few moments later, students started to drift into the common room in anticipation of dinner, and Hermione kept an eye open for her two best friends.

After about five minutes she saw them coming down the stairs. Upon seeing them she called out to them, drawing them nearer to herself.

"Hey guys!" She said excitedly. She decided she didn't want to tell them about her true identity just yet. She didn't know why, but if she had to guess, she'd say that she probably just wanted some more time to get used to it herself.

"Where were you, 'Mione?" Ron asked. "You missed all the classes. I never thought I'd see the day that you'd miss a class."

Hermione shrugged, trying to think quickly for some excuse. "I didn't feel very well; Dumbledore said I could have the day off because I have worked so hard all year. He said I need to take a break from all the stress."

Harry nodded in understanding. As if he could possibly understand what she was really going through. "You feeling better?" He asked offhandedly.

She nodded in reply, forcing a grin on her face. "Yep." She said with a smile. "You guys wanna eat?"

"Don't we always?" Ron asked, grinning widely.

The trio made their way down to the Great Hall where dinner would be served in a couple of minutes. They found their normal seats and sat down, chattering about trivial matters while waiting for the food to appear or any special announcements from Dumbledore.

When the food appeared, Harry and Ron dug in immediately, where Hermione hesitated slightly. She thought about her parents and her true self and wondered how she would act if she had been raised by her real parents. She delicately picked up her fork and knife and cut her food gracefully before eating. She found this to be a natural process, and felt that she could easily pick it up as an old habit that she didn't have to think about. She figured it couldn't hurt to be a little more graceful like her parents would have been. Just because they had been evil didn't mean everything about them had been wrong.

"So, 'Mione." Ron said with his mouth full of food. "You coming to lessons tomorrow?"

Hermione nodded gracefully. "Yes, why?"

"Because I could really use your homework to do mine. I am getting behind in Transfiguration and Potions. I need your brain to help me do my work in Potions tomorrow. Do you think you could be my partner in Potions so that I can kind of take a breather, since you've already had one?" He asked casually. It was posed as a question, but Hermione knew that he wasn't really asking. He was expecting her to just do it.

Hermione stiffened. She couldn't tell what it was that had set this off, but she suddenly became very angry. This was really pissing her off. She glared at Ron.

"No, I won't let you copy my homework, and I don't know if I want to be your partner if you are going to make me do all the work. How dare you ask me to do something like that? I'm supposed to be your friend, not your hired brain!" She exclaimed angrily. Her blood was racing in anger, and she could feel the heat rising to her cheeks, causing her to blush.

Ron looked at her confused. "Yeah, you're my friend, that's why I'm asking."

Hermione took a deep breath and excused herself from the table. She carefully walked out of the Great Hall and made her way outside. She couldn't be near either of them at the moment.

Hermione ran as fast as she could out of the school and into the cool night air. She ran towards the lake that sparkled in the moonlight; she ran out of frustration and hurt. She felt warm tears well up in her eyes, stinging her eyes, begging to be released. Hermione ran as fast as she could for as long as she could. She stopped at a tall tree right by the lake.

She reached a hand out and leaned against the tree, putting her other hand against her chest in an effort to get her heart to calm down. She felt those tears leaking from her eyes and stream down her face. She realized that even though she was crying very hard, she couldn't tell if she was sobbing, breathing very hard or both.

She leaned against the tree, after having caught her breath, tears still streaming down her face. She scowled at the ground, stomped her right foot hard, and felt her anger starting to boil once more.

"Those stupid prats! How dare they?" She said out loud to nobody. Her fists clenched at her sides.

"Talking to ourselves are we, Granger?" She heard a voice say from behind her, on the other side of the tree.

Hermione jumped up, startled to realize that there was someone else there. She turned around to find the owner of the voice to be none other than Draco Malfoy.

Hermione rolled her eyes and then glared at him. Her already volatile mood seemed to bring up six years of anger, pain, and frustration she felt because of this boy. Something inside of her snapped.

"Shut _**up**_, Malfoy!" She hissed at him. Her eyes squinted at him in an evil glare. "Just leave me the hell alone!"

Malfoy sneered at her. "How dare you talk to me like that? I think you need to be reminded of your place and your superiors, _**mudblood**_."

Hermione's eyes widened in pain and anger at his use of the slur. Her shoulders dropped in defeat. She knew there was nothing she could say or do to stop this boy from tormenting her. She sighed sadly.

"Just leave, Malfoy." She said quietly. "I'm in no mood to argue with a prat like you." She turned to walk away when he called after her.

"You really do need to respect your superiors, mudblood." He said with a hiss in his voice.

Hermione heard him hiss the curse and six years of training and instinct kicked in and she whipped around and deflected the curse. Her movements were so fast that Draco barely had time to duck when his curse flew back at him.

He stared at her, his eyes wide and angry. He was seething at this point and his whole body was tense.

"I could teach you a thing or two about respecting your superiors, Malfoy." She said in a low, dangerous tone. "I wouldn't try that again. There are dangerous people who wouldn't appreciate it if you killed me."

Malfoy sneered at her again. "You certainly do flatter yourself, Granger. And I really wouldn't consider Potter or Dumbledore dangerous."

"I was talking about Voldemort, you insignificant little prat!" Hermione yelled. Realizing what she just said, she slapped both hands over her mouth, dropping her wand.

Draco's grip on his wand tightened as he took a threatening step towards her. "You dare speak his name? Who the hell do you think you are?"

"I can't tell you." She said through clenched teeth.

Draco flew at her, he grabbed the front of her robs and pressed his wand into her neck. "You tell me what you're hiding before I curse you into oblivion." He said with a growl. "You'd better have a good reason for vainly speaking his name."

Hermione's breath quickened and her eyes were wide with surprise at his actions. "I'm not Hermione Granger."

"What are you on about?"

"I'm not Hermione Granger. It's a false identity my parents gave me to protect me." She said quietly.

"Who are you?" He hissed again.

"Some girl named Karina Martini." She whispered.

Draco dropped his hand from her robes and stumbled a few steps back. He looked at her in shock. "You're a liar." He whispered. "She's dead. _**How do you even know about her?**_"

"You know who I am?" She asked in surprise.

Draco shook his head and pointed his wand at her again. "You had better explain why you're making up stories."

Hermione shook her head rapidly. "I'm not making up stories!" She yelled defensively. "I only just found out myself! Do you think I like being the daughter of _**Death Eaters**_?"

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" He demanded.

She shrugged. "I don't know how to prove it." She paused. "Oh! You could cast a revealing charm on me."

Draco didn't speak, he just pointed his wand at her. A faint, misty white light came towards her. She felt the same tingling warmth come over her as in Dumbledore's office. She closed her eyes reveling in the magic that consumed her. When the warmth left her, she opened her eyes and saw bright white letters in front of her.

_Karina Martini._

She gasped at the sight. She looked over at Draco, who had lost what little color he had in his face.

"It's true." He whispered. "But how?"

Hermione shrugged. "I only know what Dumbledore told me. He only knew what my parents told him."

"I don't know what to do with this." Draco said. He paused. "I have to inform my father and the Dark Lord. They'll be so pleased."

"No!" She cried out. Draco just stared at her.

"Why?" He asked. "Karina, my father said that the Dark Lord still mourns you. You were the most favored child."

Hermione took a deep breath. "I don't know what I'm going to do yet. I haven't even told Harry and Ron yet." She confessed. "I need time to process this. I need time to think."

Draco considered what she said and then nodded. He looked at her again. "I'll keep this to myself for now. This is very useful information and I need to consider the best way to handle this."

Hermione scrunched up her beautiful features and scowled at him. "So what? I'm just going to be a pawn for you? A tool to advance your Death Eater career?"

Draco scowled back at her. "What does it matter? Once the Dark Lord finds out, you'll be his favorite. You won't be a pawn. You'll be an heiress. So what if I use this to get myself out of a hole?"

Hermione cocked her head to the side in confusion. "What hole are you in?"

"Why should I tell you?" He asked.

Hermione folded her arms over her chest and glared. "I told you my secret."

"I've been given an impossible mission." He whispered. "That's all you need to know." He avoided her gaze, obviously full of guilt and shame.

"Draco." Hermione whispered, moving towards him.

The use of his first name did not go unnoticed by either of them. They both paused awkwardly for the briefest moment before she continued. Hermione had a tender heart and despite what this boy had done to her, she had a feeling he could still be saved.

"It's not too late to stop, Draco." She said softly, coming to stand next to him.

He turned to look at her, anger and frustration in his eyes. "It's not too late?" He barked at her. He ripped his left sleeve up and revealed his forearm to her. The ugly, black tattoo stood out against his pale skin. "I think we can both agree that it's far too late for me."

Hermione said nothing as she closed the distance between them. She reached her tan fingers towards his pale skin and lightly traced over the Dark Mark with a morbid fascination. He looked down at her in shock.

She met his gaze with wide, innocent eyes and smiled softly. She moved her hand down to his. "We'll figure something out." She said quietly. "I think we can help each other."

Draco didn't say anything for a long time. He stared out over the lake in contemplation. He sighed loudly and looked at her with a small smirk.

"We'll meet again and figure something out." He said.

Hermione went to retrieve her wand and started back to the castle. She paused and looked back at him over her shoulder.

"Goodnight, Draco." She said with her own little smirk.

"Goodnight, Karina."

Hermione turned back to the castle. She lifted her wand and transformed herself back to Hermione. Draco just watched her walk away.

_What the hell just happened?_


End file.
